From Nam to Zam!

I have flown the last year and a half in Namibia, and as that time has come to an end I will be writing on the adventures I encounter in the beautiful country of Zambia for the next 6 months! A Namibian blog post will slip through every now and again, as it was an extremely good experience. Unfortunately, at peak season it would have been impossible to maintain a blog as it was horrendously busy.

 

I anticipated that I might only leave mid-April as our ridiculously efficient CAA was in charge of issuing my license before I could be let loose on my journey. Surprisingly the Gods must have aligned the stars as the favour I had asked CAA to expedite the issuing of my license had come true!

After saying my goodbye’s in the lounge at OR Tambo and quenching my thirst with a home-brewed DP lager it was time to hit the road on RwandAir 737-800NG to Lusaka, Kenneth Kaunda airport.

The flight was uneventful, although the pilot flying, hammer-headed the approach quite a bit! No worries, we have 4 km of tar ahead to iron out the judgement error. After grabbing my bags I headed to the MTN stall to get a sim. F**k…was it cramped, hot and smelly in there! Filled out the form and after copying my passport nr. I quickly exited.

It was great meeting my new boss who drove me to his residence where I would stay to complete the validation process. The first taste of the roads was an eye opener let me tell you. Potholes the size of mini craters. Think I’ll go plant some trees in them later.

So, the next morning a knock on my door at 7am sharp….”breakfast is ready!”  Splashed some water on my face, and made my way to the breakfast table on the outside patio. You know that feeling when you’re awake but your mind is still in idle? That’s exactly what I felt like right through the breakfast (definitely not a morning person). To boot system, please press Enter…Where’s Enter??

After a delicious brekkie, I noticed the zip of my bag where I put my passport was open. No passport, oh bugger. I must have forgotten it at the MTN stall! So we head over there and thank goodness it was still there. Phew…crises averted. Since then, whenever we go somewhere I’m asked: “Do you have your passport with you?” Yeah yeah, probably deserve that one.